Nba Season Betting Odds

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Understanding NBA Championship odds is important for any basketball fan looking to bet on the NBA Finals.

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  3. Nba Season Betting Odds Ncaa Basketball
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  • Without 162 game season per team and 30 teams, MLB is the ultimate sports action for sports gaming. The best MLB betting sites include Betway and Spin palace sports. It is no secret that many people crush bet on MLB, as it has most of the experts. Soccer Odds, British Open Championship and Premier League Betting Lines Betting is also done in.
  • As we head into NBA All-Star Weekend, last year’s Eastern Conference winners, the Miami Heat, made a huge move on the NBA Championship Odds’ board, an Eastern Conference favorite became a title odds underlay, and a team in the West emerged as the conference’s top overlay.
  • Chris Sheridan delivers a pro basketball season betting preview for 2020-21. A look at NBA futures odds with breakdowns of the East and West.

We begin by taking a look at one of the most popular betting odds for NBA, the point spread. The odds are created to try and give each team a 50/50 chance of winning the game regardless of their ability and form going into the contest.

Betting on the NBA Championship requires making a futures bet on a chosen team. An NBA Championship futures bet can be made at virtually any point during the regular season or playoffs. Wagering during the offseason is even possible, as sportsbooks set NBA odds for the following season’s champion soon after the current season ends.

The COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented situation for the 2019-2020 NBA season. After a nearly five-month pause, 22 teams remain in the hunt to hoist the NBA Finals trophy.

Current NBA Finals Odds 2021

+400 +280 +280 +260
+9000 +300 +280 +300
+320 +550 +525 +550
+240 +750 +750 +700
+5000 +850 +800 +900
+2500 +1200 +1400 +1200
+2500 +3000 +2800 +3000
+2500 +3000 +3000 +3000
+25000 +3200 +3300 +3000
+900 +4600 +3000 +3000
+4000 +5500 +4000 +5000
+2000 +5500 +6600 +5000
+10000 +8500 +6600 +6000
+16000 +8500 +6600 +6000
+800 +16000 +10000 +10000
+50000 +16000 +15000 +10000
+15000 +19000 +10000 +15000
+12500 +16000 +15000 +25000
+25000 +19000 +25000 +25000
+50000 +24000 +15000 +25000
+20000 +24000 +20000 +25000
+95000 +24000 +20000 +25000
+15000 +25000 +50000 +25000
+30000 +25000 +25000 +50000
+1600 +25000 +25000 +50000
+30000 +25000 +25000 +75000
+50000 +25000 +50000 +90000
+10000 +25000 +50000 +90000
+25000 +25000 +50000 +90000
+20000 +25000 +50000 +90000

Odds are updated daily.

Odds To Win The NBA Finals – Whose Odds Are Increasing?

Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers go into the NBA restart as one of three favorites topping the futures odds list. The legendary franchise added perennial all-star forward Anthony Davis before the 2019-2020 season. Davis joined a roster that already featured LeBron James, one of the NBA’s all-time greats.

Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks and the Lakers have switched back and forth as the sportsbook favorite to win the NBA Finals Championship several times throughout the season. Anchored by all-star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks stand as virtually dead even with the Lakers as the odds-on favorite to win the NBA Championship.

Los Angeles Clippers

Sitting just behind the Lakers and Bucks, the Los Angeles Clippers stayed near the top of the list of NBA Championship favorites throughout the season. With a loaded lineup featuring all-NBA players like Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, the Clippers should attract plenty of interest from futures bettors as the season resumes.

Odds To Win The NBA Finals – Who’s In Trouble?

Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz battled the Denver Nuggets for first place in the NBA Northwest Division for much of the 2019-2020 season. Turmoil hit the Jazz just before the season paused, with Utah’s Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell becoming the first NBA players to test positive for COVID-19.

Odds

Houston Rockets

Graphing the NBA Finals Championship odds on the Houston Rockets throughout the season reveals an up-and-down rollercoaster. Different sportsbooks hold various views on the chance of the Rockets winning the championship, with lines varying from +1200 to +1700 going into the season restart. With explosive players like James Harden and Russell Westbrook on the roster, however, don’t count out the Rockets.

Philadelphia 76ers

The 76ers were just seconds away from advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2018-2019. After entering the season among the top five contenders at many sportsbooks, Philadelphia now sits as a longshot to claim the NBA title, with odds hovering around +2300 according to DraftKings Sportsbook.

What’s Different In The 2020 NBA Season

The NBA shut down the 2019-2020 regular season on March 11, as the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic began to take effect around the world. Weeks of uncertainty about the remainder of the season followed.

Most of the NBA’s 30 teams played about 65 of the 82 games on the regular-season schedule before the pause. After a nearly five-month hiatus, the season finally resumes July 30.

The remainder of the season commences from the NBA “bubble” in Orlando, Florida. All games will be played at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort.

Only 22 of the NBA’s 30 teams return for the remainder of the season. Each team will play a total of eight “seeding games” before the playoffs begin.

NBA Playoffs Format For 2019-2020

The regular NBA format sees the top 16 teams (eight from Eastern Conference and eight from the Western Conference) advance to the playoffs. The 2019-2020 postseason also uses that format, but with an extra addition.

The top seven teams from each conference automatically advance to the postseason. The eighth seed also automatically advances if it’s four games of more ahead of the ninth-place team after the seeding games are played.

If the eighth-place team is fewer than four games ahead of the No. 9 team at season’s end, the eighth and ninth seeds play each other for the final playoff spot.

Nba Season Betting Odds

The two teams play each other in a maximum of two games, and if the No. 8 seed wins either it advances to playoffs. If the No. 9 seed wins both games, it goes to the postseason.

When the eight playoff teams from each conference are set, the playoffs proceed in the traditional format. Teams play each other in best-of-seven series until the champion is determined.

The unprecedented setting and changes to the playoff format could mean that NBA Championship favorites face a tougher road to the NBA Finals trophy. While the Lakers, Bucks, and Clippers still stand as the favorites, bets on teams with longer odds could prove profitable.

Where Can I Bet On The NBA Finals Online?

FanDuel Sportsbook

FanDuel Sportsbook stands as one of the top destinations for legal online sports betting in the US. New players can sign up for an account and enjoy a risk-free bet up to $500 on their first wager.

The FanDuel Sportsbook platform operates in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Colorado, and West Virginia.

DraftKings Sportsbook

DraftKings Sportsbook takes a spot as one of the most popular online sportsbooks in the US. Bettors in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia enjoy access to the platform.

Bonuses for new players at DraftKings Sportsbook include a risk-free bet up to $500, a 20% deposit match bonus up to $500, and a $25 no-deposit bonus.

BetRivers

BetRivers recently launched as the first online sportsbook to go live in Illinois. The platform also operates in Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Indiana.

BetRivers offers one of the most generous deposit match bonuses in the sports betting industry. New players can get a $100% deposit match, up to $250, with just a 1x playthrough requirement.

FOX Bet

FOX Bet operates through a partnership of FOX Sports and The Stars Group. This online sportsbook brand is available in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Colorado.

New player bonuses include a 50% deposit match bonus up to $500 and a risk-free bet up to $500.

PointsBet

The PointsBet brand offers “PointsBetting”, a unique way of betting that awards bigger payouts based on a selected team’s margin of victory.

PointsBet operates in New Jersey, Indiana, and Iowa. Players in those states can take advantage of a risk-free bet bonus, up to $200.

Online Sportsbook Odds On The NBA Finals

LA LakersBrooklyn NetsLA ClippersMIL BucksUtah JazzPHL 76ers
DraftKings Sportsbook+250+320+500+700+800+1200
FanDuel Sportsbook+280+300+550+750+500+1500
BetRivers+250+320+500+700+800+1200
William Hill+260+300+500+750+850+1400
PointsBet+260+300+500+650+700+1500

Where Can I Bet On The NBA Finals In Vegas?

Taking a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada, puts you right in the center of one of the best places to watch sports in the world. Finding a place to bet on the NBA Championship is as easy as venturing to one of the city’s legendary retail sportsbooks.

The Westgate SuperBook, Caesars Palace, Wynn, South Point, Venetian, and many other Las Vegas casinos host sportsbooks. All of these venues offer numerous ways to bet on the NBA.

Nevada hosts legal online sports betting as well. William Hill, Westgate SuperBook, Station Casinos, Golden Nugget, and Circa Sports represent just a few of the many options for mobile sports betting in Nevada.

How NBA Championship Odds Are Calculated

The following table shows the NBA Championship futures odds at FanDuel Sportsbook before the 2019-2020 season restart:

TeamOdds to win the 2019-2020 NBA Championship
Milwaukee Bucks+240
Los Angeles Lakers+260
Los Angeles Clippers+320
Houston Rockets+1700
Boston Celtics+1800

This table displays the lines on the NBA Champion as moneyline odds. All “+” moneyline odds display the amount of profit made off a $100 bet.

A $100 bet on the Milwaukee Bucks, for example, yields $240 profit if it wins. This means if you bet $100 and the Bucks win, the sportsbooks returns $340 to you ($240 profit plus the original $100 bet).

To calculate “+” odds for any moneyline bet, divide the odds by 100, and multiply that figure by the amount of the bet. So for instance, a +240 line means you must divide 240 by 100, which yields 2.4. You then multiply your bet amount by 2.4 to calculate the amount of profit.

A $50 bet results in $120 profit ($50 x 2.4), a $75 bet yields $180 in profit ($75 x 2.4), and so on.

If the Bucks were set at -240 odds, that number means you have to bet $240 to earn $100 in profit. You can calculate a -240 line by dividing 100 by 240, which yields 0.416.

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Multiplying the amount of your bet by 0.416 gives you the amount of profit realized on a -240 moneyline bet. A $50 bet yields $20.80 in profit ($50 x 0.416), a $75 bet results in a $31.20 profit (75 x 0.416), etc.

What Might Affect The NBA Finals Odds?

As the NBA regular season plays on, the championship picture becomes clearer. A team that appeared as a strong championship contender in the preseason might be completely out of the running come playoff time.

Injuries, trades, coaching changes, and other factors can greatly affect futures odds. For example, the Golden State Warriors began the 2019-2020 season as one of the top five favorites to win the NBA Finals Championship.

All-star guard Stephen Curry broke his hand in the second game of the season, however, and the injury kept him out of the lineup virtually the entire season. As a result, the Warriors posted the NBA’s worst record, and aren’t among the 22 teams returning to Orlando for the season restart.

Betting Odds For The NBA Finals Breakdown

Milwaukee Bucks (+240)

Following up on a strong 2018-2019 campaign, the Bucks come into the season restart with the NBA’s best record. All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo is second in the league in both points (29.6 PPG) and rebounds (13.7 RPG). Milwaukee goes to Orlando as the odds-on favorite to win the NBA Championship.

  • 53-12 record (1st in the Eastern Conference, best overall record in the NBA)
  • +240 odds to win the NBA Championship (according to DraftKings Sportsbook)
  • Led by Giannis Antetokounmpo (29.6 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 54.7 FG%) and Khris Middleton (21.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG 41.8 3FG%)

Los Angeles Lakers (+260)

The Lakers, Clippers, and Bucks lead the pack among NBA Championship contenders as the season restarts. The addition of All-Star forward Anthony Davis to a lineup that already included LeBron James made the Lakers instant preseason favorites. That trend continued throughout the season.

  • 49-14 record (1st in the Western Conference)
  • +260 NBA Finals odds
  • Top players include LeBron James (25.7 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 10.6 APG); Anthony Davis (26.7 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 2.44 BPG).

Los Angeles Clippers (+320)

The addition of All-Star players Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in the offseason placed the Clippers high on the list of preseason favorites. The new roster lived up to expectations before the regular season pause, and the Clippers remain a strong contender to the title.

  • 44-20 record (2nd in the Western Conference)
  • +320 odds to win the NBA Finals Championship
  • Key players include Kawhi Leonard (26.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.8 SPG), and Paul George (21.0 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.33 SPG).

Houston Rockets (+1700)

All-purpose threat Russell Westbrook reunited with former teammate James Harden in Houston before the season. With Westbrook and Harden on the same team, NBA oddsmakers set the Rockets as one of the top picks to win the NBA championship before the season. Those odds went up and down throughout the season, but Houston’s explosive offense makes the Rockets a factor in the Orlando bubble.

  • 40-24 record (tied for 5th in the Western Conference)
  • +1700 odds to win the NBA Championship (according to DraftKings Sportsbook; odds on the Rockets vary significantly across different sportsbooks).
  • Led by James Harden (34.4 PPG, 271 3FGM, 7.4 APG) and Russell Westbrook (27.5 PPG, 7.0 APG, 1.66 SPG).

Toronto Raptors (+2000)

The defending NBA champions saw star player Kawhi Leonard leave in the offseason to play on the Los Angeles Clippers. While Leonard’s departure stands as a significant loss, the Raptors still battled the Bucks for Eastern Conference supremacy throughout the season.

  • 46-18 record (2nd in the Eastern Conference)
  • +2000 odds to win the NBA Finals
  • Top players include Pascal Siakam (23.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.00 SPG), and Kyle Lowry (19.7 PPG, 7.7 APG, 1.35 SPG).

Learn more in our Guide To Placing A Sports Bet Online.

Nba Season Betting Odds Ncaa Football

Betting

NBA Finals Odds And Betting

What Is An NBA Futures Bet?

A futures bet in any sport represents a wager on an event that spans longer than a single game or playoff series. Futures bets generally refer to season-long events.

NBA futures bets include opportunities to wager on what team will win the NBA Championship, what player will win the Eastern Conference, what team will lead the league in wins, and so on.

Other futures bets include totals (over/under) wagers on how many games a chosen team will win in the NBA regular season.

Futures bets can be made at any time up until the wagered-on event happens.

What Is An NBA Finals Prop Bet?

Wagering on an in-game or in-series event not related to what team wins or loses means making a prop bet.

Prop bets on the NBA Championship could include what player will win the NBA Finals MVP, or whether a certain player will average over 30 PPG. Exotic prop bets on the NBA Finals could include wagers on whether the combined point total in the final game of the series ends up as odd or even.

The 2018-2019 NBA Finals (Golden State Warriors vs. Toronto Raptors) featured numerous prop bets. Some of these wagers included whether the series would end in a 4-0 sweep either way, what player would lead the series in scoring, and what player would win the NBA Finals MVP.

NBA Prop Bets

Most regular-season NBA prop bets function as futures bets on different statistics and player awards. These wagers can include betting on what player will lead the league in scoring, what player will win the NBA Rookie of the Year award, and so on.

Going into the 2019-2020 restart, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo stands as the overwhelming favorite to win the league MVP.

DraftKings Sportsbook sets the odds on Antetokounmpo winning the MVP at -5000. LeBron James comes in a +1000, with Anthony Davis, Luka Doncic, and James Harden all set at +10000.

The NBA will award the MVP and other 2019-2020 accolades based on games played before the season paused on March 11.

See our full Guide To Sports Betting Odds.

Odds For The NBA Finals Championship FAQ

Is it legal to bet on the NBA Championship in the US?

Yes, in states with legalized sports betting. Going into the NBA season restart, 19 US states allow legal sports betting, with 13 of those states offering legal online sports betting.

Some of the states that offer both land-based and online sportsbooks include Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Indiana, and Illinois.

Office pools and other betting on the NBA Championship outside of legal sportsbooks are technically against the law.

How old do I need to be to bet on the NBA Championship?

21 in most US states. The minimum age for betting on the NBA Championship, and sports betting of any kind, is 21 in most states. Exceptions to this rule are Rhode Island and Montana, each of which offers legal online sports betting to players 18 and over.

Legal online sportsbooks offer the most convenient way to bet on the NBA Finals. Top choices for online sports betting include DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, FOX Bet, BetRivers, and PointsBet.

Many other legal online sportsbooks operate in the US, but this list represents some of the most popular and reliable platforms where you can find NBA Championship betting.

These different platforms operate in different US states, so be sure to check out each brand’s website to find out where each is available.

Is it safe to place an NBA Championship bet online?

Yes. As long as you’re betting at a state-regulated, legal online platform, placing a bet on the NBA Championship at an online sportsbook is perfectly safe.

Legal online sportsbooks function as extensions of land-based casinos in the states in which they operate. As such, placing a bet at a legal online sportsbook is just as safe as placing that same bet at a legal retail casino.

Do online sportsbooks offer in-game, live betting during the NBA Championship?
Nba Season Betting Odds

Yes. Like all other NBA regular season and playoff games, the NBA Finals presents numerous ways to bet in-game at legal online sportsbooks.

All of the different in-game and in-play bets that could be made in a regular-season game can also be made during any game of the NBA Finals.

Who is the current favorite to win the NBA Championship in 2020?

The Milwaukee Bucks, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. The Bucks sit at +240 odds to win the championship, with the Lakers (+260) and the Clippers (+320) also sit as strong contenders.

The Bucks and Lakers have traded places throughout the season as the favorite to win the title, and odds on these teams, as well as the Clippers, vary across different sportsbooks. The odds can also change based on what happens in the rest of the NBA regular season.

Yes. The NBA Finals will begin September 30 and play through October 13 at the latest. All games will be played from the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Let’s face it, the Lakers are going to win the championship, Luka Doncic is going to be the MVP, and nobody else has a chance. Wagering money elsewhere is like using Benjamins as toilet paper.

Right? Well, maybe not.

Lest we forget, two seasons ago LeBron James got injured and the Lakers’ season fell apart. Two years ago, the Golden State Warriors were favored to win it all again. Then the injury bug bit them in the Finals.

Not everything goes as planned.

So take preseason prognostications with a grain of salt when trying to predict what will happen between now and mid-July. There are a bunch of good teams in both conferences who can make trades between now and March 25, so what any team’s roster looks like in late December and what it might look like in April are two entirely different things.

Also, there is the James Harden factor to consider when it comes to picking a championship favorite. If he stays in Houston, the Rockets are not all that bad now that they have a pair of accomplished bigs in DeMarcus Cousins and Christian Wood. If Harden gets dealt to Miami, maybe bettors will show a little more respect to the team that made it all the way to the NBA Finals last season.

Harden is a huge, huge game-changer if he changes teams, and the fact that he has never won a championship should not be held against him. With the right mix of players, he can emerge with a championship this summer. The big question is, where will he be playing?

So avoid irrational exuberance when handicapping the NBA futures market as Tuesday night’s start of the season approaches. Things change. Didn’t 2020 teach all of us that? And what looks like a sure thing in December becomes a punch-yourself-in-the-head memory by springtime.

With those warnings in mind, let’s look at the two conferences and some of the more popular NBA futures markets.

ALSO READ: NBA Win Total Over/Unders: Bucks set the pace at 50.5 victories

Eastern Conference

The Brooklyn Nets are the most wagered-on team at practically every sportsbook – and with good reason. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are finally playing together, general manager Sean Marks has built a team that is two-deep at every position, and Steve Nash will be a player’s coach. Heck, he played against some of these players.

Brooklyn is +600 to win it all just about everywhere, while the Bucks are regarded a bit more strongly with championship odds of +500 to +550. The Nets have taken 23.49% of the bet count in the championship futures market at PointsBet, with the Lakers second at 20.3% and the Warriors (+2500) third at 6.7%, PointsBet spokesman Patrick Eichner said.

Then we have Miami, which took the Milwaukee Bucks apart in the playoffs and did fairly well against the Lakers in the Finals until their lack of experience started to show late in the series. For 2020-21, they lost Jae Crowder but gained Avery Bradley and Moe Harkless. They should be just about as good as they were last season, so their price of +2000 at PointsBet (as opposed to +1500 at DraftKings) is somewhat enticing.

Miami did not make the list of the top three teams wagered-on to win the title at FanDuel Sportsbook, spokesman Kevin Hennessy said – identifying the 76ers (21%), Lakers (15.5%) and Nets (14.7%) as the top three.

The Bucks swapped Eric Bledsoe for Jrue Holiday to appease Giannis Antetokounmpo, but they still have Khris Middleton – who has not shown up in the playoffs for two straight seasons. Their games against the Nets and Heat should serve as regular season litmus tests to see if more changes are needed before the trading deadline.

The Celtics and 76ers remain the best of the rest in the East, but keep an eye on the up-and-coming Atlanta Hawks – who have built a strong young nucleus of Trae Young, Clint Capela and John Collins. Atlanta also went out and added Bogdan Bogdanovic, Rajon Rondo and Danilo Gallinari. If the team meshes quickly, they offer the best value for dreamers – with odds of +10000 at every major sportsbook.

In the player award category, Doncic is the leading MVP candidate with odds that have steadily dropped and are now below 4-1, with Antetokounmpo as the consensus No. 2 choice as he goes for his third straight MVP award. But keep in mind that voters give considerable weight to teams that outperform expectations, and that is where an outlier candidate could have a chance. If, for instance, the Hawks finish with the most wins in the NBA (a +25000 proposition at BetMGM), it’ll likely be because of Young – who is on the board as an MVP candidate at odds ranging from +6000 at DraftKings and William Hill, to +8000 at BetMGM.

Picking an MVP candidate from Brooklyn is tricky because Irving and Durant will split the load, but Jayson Tatum in Boston (best odds are +2600 at FanDuel) and Joel Embiid in Philadelphia (best odds are +4000 at BetMGM) are value picks if either of those teams overachieve and compile the best record in the East.

In the Rookie of the Year race, winning is not as important as exceeding individual expectations, producing monster stat lines, and making Top Plays of the Week. LaMelo Ball of Charlotte is the favorite, mostly because of the lack of a better candidate. But it should be noted that Knicks rookie Obi Toppin has been drawing action, and point guard Immanuel Quickley started for New York on Friday night and was very impressive. He can be wagered at +5000 at DraftKings Sportsbook.

Western Conference

After the offseason they had – adding Dennis Schroder, Montrezl Harrell and Marc Gasol – the Lakers are rightly the favorites to repeat as champions. If you are looking for someone to minimize their chances, you are looking in the wrong place. They are a beast … and we have seen nothing from the Clippers in the preseason to make us believe they are in the same class.

But as mentioned above, injuries happen. LeBron has a ton of miles on his odometer and it’s a safe bet that he doesn’t play all that much in the regular season. The Lakers may not enter the postseason as the top seed in the West.

Outside of LA, the Denver Nuggets had a 2-1 preseason and won their games by an average of 20.7 points per game, the Utah Jazz went 3-0 and won by an average of 17.6, and New Orleans went 2-0 and won by an average of 18 points.

Of those three teams, the Nuggets are the most highly regarded, with odds ranging from +1600 at FanDuel to +2500 at PointsBet to win the title. Utah is priced between +3000 at most places to +4000 at BetMGM, and Zion and the Pelicans are +7000 at most places but +8500 at FanDuel.

But bettors are still going hard on the Lakers, as was the case last season.

“Last season the Lakers received more handle and bets than any other team – on the way to their 17th championship as a franchise – and this season many bettors are predicting the purple and gold to repeat,” said Johnny Avello, DraftKings’ head of sportsbook operations. “Currently, 37% of handle and 26% of bets to win the NBA Finals are on the Lake Show, the most for any team despite a quick season start turnaround following their deep postseason. A healthy Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving have raised the Brooklyn Nets to the second overall rank for championship betting, taking 22% of handle and 15% of bets.”

Nba Season Betting Odds College Bowl

Perhaps most surprising among MVP odds is how the books see Anthony Davis as more likely to win the award than LeBron, who led the league in assists last season and was quickly gaining ground on Antetokounmpo when the season was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Most books have Davis as the third or fourth choice behind Doncic, Giannis and Steph Curry – with BetMGM the only major book to have LeBron (+800) more likely than Davis (+900). Curiously, Zion is priced at +3600 at FanDuel but +6600 at PointsBet and BetMGM.

Eastern Conference rookies are drawing the most wagering interest, especially Orlando’s Cole Anthony after he led all rookies in scoring during the preseason. James Wiseman, the overall No. 2 pick of the Golden State Warriors, has the lowest odds among West rookies – although the Warriors are making bettors fly blind. Coach Steve Kerr did not play Wiseman in any of Golden State’s three preseason games, so the first we may see of the lanky Chris Bosh clone could be at 7 p.m. EST Tuesday night when the Warriors open the season at Brooklyn. He has been practicing with the Warriors’ first unit, but the money is being placed on Ball at FanDuel, with the New Orleans rookie drawing 18.5% of the bet count – more than twice as much as the second choice, Toppin.

Jamal Murray of Denver has overtaken Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Oklahoma City as the favorite to win Most Improved Player, his odds dropping to +1200 at most books with the exception of +1800 at FanDuel.

This is an interesting category for Murray to be a mover, since one would assume he would be among the top MVP candidates following his extraordinary play in the NBA bubble when he went for 50 twice in the playoffs and 40 a pair of other times as Denver became the first team in NBA history to come back from a pair of 3-1 deficits.

Nba Season Betting Odds Ncaa Basketball

This will be Murray’s fifth NBA season, and the expectation that has made him a Most Improved favorite is that his scoring average, which has been 18.2 and 18.5 the past two seasons, will take a quantum leap. The catch here is that what quantifies improvement for one voter may not resonate quite as much with a different voter.

And thus a player such as Christian Wood of the Rockets, who averaged just 13.1 points per game last season playing for his fifth team in five seasons, might make a spectacular leap under Stephen Silas in Houston – starring alongside center DeMarcus Cousins. The best price on Wood is +1400 at FanDuel and PointsBet. DraftKings has taken the most action on Michael Porter Jr. of the Denver Nuggets (15% of bets at +1600), with Williamson second in handle – 10%.

One interesting Western Conference team in the championship futures market is the Phoenix Suns, who just missed the playoffs after going 8-0 in the bubble.

“While Phoenix had already raised expectations for 2020-21 and opened with a championship line of 70-to-1, the acquisition of ageless point god Chris Paul moved the Suns’ odds down to 40-to-1 at the start of camp,” Avello said. “The presence of Paul, if healthy, should create off-ball opportunities for (Devin) Booker along with lethal pick-and-roll combos with DeAndre Ayton. That has bettors intrigued.”

“Intrigued” is the word of the moment as the season gets set to tip off.

Nba Season Betting Odds

Just remember, what looks like sure thing in December will change multiple times over the course of the season.

Nba Preseason Betting Odds

2021 NBA title odds